Mountain Bike Articles Magazine
Writer’s Block – 10 Easy Ways to Ensure it Never Happens to You
1 Lock yourself in a room. There is a story in writer circles about a guy who is placed in a room. He owed his editor an article, and he was placed in the room until he produced the words (he may have also been given a sandwich and a bottle of water). He wrote the article to escape the room. Similarly, if you are in a situation in which you must write to subsist; if you know that you must write ten blog posts a week, as well as a certain number of article submissions and web comments, or you will starve… guess what? You may need to rid yourself of distractions to meet your goals. Many professional writers place a computer in an area that has no Internet connection to ensure they are not sidetracked by email and other online habits.
2 Start writing. Many writers are self taught and learned to write by way of reading other writers’ work. That is not to say that they plagiarize. They learned the basics of writing an article’s introduction, body and conclusion by reading magazine articles and nonfiction books: The suddenly feel comfortable penning text in a manner that is similar to the way in which they read. In other words, you may want to just get started writing and not become overly concerned with the details. This does not necessarily mean that writers such as these write poorly. To the contrary, it means that they quickly generate a first draft, realizing that they or an editor will work toward perfecting the words at a later date.
3 Start writing anything. Write an email message to get warmed up (draft it on a laptop in the room with no Internet connection). Or, write that letter of complaint about the quality of your mountain bike that you’ve been meaning to send to the company that built it. Write your mom or dad a letter. Penning text warms you up to pen other text.
4 Alcohol (not). Allow your writing to ferment. An old freelance trick is to let your words rest for a minimum of three days, and then conduct a self-edit, which will more than likely turn into a rewrite. You may believe yourself to be a good writer, but the waiting period allows you to see unintentional errors such as “it’s” versus “its,” “their” versus “there,” and so forth. The cooling off period also makes it easier to eliminate clunky text that you originally thought was written in an exceedingly clear manner. You will see many mistakes in many areas, especially in the general flow of your writing. Knock out a first draft quickly, as noted above. Write any old thing you want, then take a look at your gibberish after three days. It’s a fun exercise that completely eliminates any possibility of writer’s block. Write drafts for other articles while waiting the three days.
5 Power nap. This won’t work if you don’t try to make it work. You must strive for a very short nap, no more than ten or fifteen minutes, in total quiet and total darkness (don’t be surprised if you wake up in the dark and don’t know where you’re at). Use window shades and ear plugs, if you must. Wake up refreshed. Start writing.
6 Get a life. If you’re searching for ideas to write about, take a walk. Literally, walk outside for some fresh air. Find a park. Walk downtown. Take a bike ride. Go on a weekend trip. Get out and do something to experience your world and ideas will seemingly arrive from nowhere.
7 Get some exercise. Take a walk or ride a bike, specifically with physical fitness in mind. Breaking a sweat loosens up the brain and forces thought process. Talk to your doctor first if you have health concerns or do not normally use physical fitness to generate writing ideas.
8 Brainstorm. Write the word “article” on a piece of a paper. Then write the words “article about a dog.” Next, write “article about a dog that is sitting beside a house.” If you own a dog, write your story. All dog owners have a story about how meaningful it is to take care of a dog in this rather uncaring world. People who don’t have pets may write about their bicycles or their cars; their house or their apartment; the town or area in which they live; the life in their local park; or what goes on in that patch of woods right outside their window. Brainstorming is easy. It’s just a matter of picking up a traditional pen and pad of paper to start jotting.
9 Healthy, Wealthy and Wise. Stay up really late until you can hardly keep your eyes open, then start drinking coffee (kidding). A number of writers go to bed early at night, specifically to get up very early in the morning to allow time to write before they being their day. The topic of which is better – sunrises or sunsets – is obviously arguable. However, no alcohol, no nicotine, healthy food, a fitness regime, a good night’s rest, and rising way before the crack of dawn can greatly assist clear thought process.
10 Get a muse. Many writers use online discussion groups to exchange ideas. Quite a few people are muses without realizing it.
About the Author
Born and raised in tornado alley, Sean Kinn is a former military correspondent, current freelance writer, edocument guru (edocster), cartoonist, screenwriter, buncha other stuff. Kinn coined the terms “Web 2.0 Freelance Writing,” “Multipliers,” “Revenue Channeling,” “Framed Management” and “Most Valuable Actor,” and is an expert on digital substitution, disintermediation and experiential learning. Although mostly self-educated, he also has an MBA in E-Business & Technology from Columbia Southern University, and a BS in Communication Studies from University of Maryland. When he is not writing, he is traveling the world.
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